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YOUR EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS
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NON-TOXIC CLEANING 101
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FEATURED
YOUR EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS
ExPLORE
NON-TOXIC CLEANING 101
Chlorine is added to pool water as a disinfectant. At the levels recommended by the CDC—a minimum of 1 ppm free chlorine with pH between 7.2 and 7.8—it kills most germs within minutes. The World Health Organization sets an upper threshold of 5 ppm; anything above this, and pools should be closed to swimmers.
At the recommended levels, chlorine is doing exactly what it's supposed to do. The issue isn't usually the chlorine itself, but what happens when chlorine interacts with what swimmers bring into the water.
That strong chemical smell at the pool is certainly not from clean water. It's from chloramines, which form when chlorine binds with nitrogen-containing compounds from swimmers' sweat, body oils, skin cells, cosmetics, and urine. According to the CDC, combined chlorine (chloramines) should be kept at or below 0.4 ppm in well-maintained pools.
Chloramines are responsible for most of the eye stinging, skin dryness, and respiratory irritation that people associate with chlorine. A pool that smells strongly of "chlorine" is actually telling you it has a chloramine problem, often from too many swimmers and not enough fresh chlorine to break down chloramines.
Researchers have identified over 100 disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in chlorinated pool water, which can pose real risks for your health. Swimmers are exposed through three routes: breathing in volatile compounds above the water surface, absorbing them through the skin, and swallowing small amounts of water. For most recreational swimmers, this exposure is minimal. For competitive swimmers and pool staff with daily, prolonged exposure, the research suggests elevated rates of eye, nasal, and respiratory symptoms over time.
Parents of young children have extra reason to pay attention. A study published in Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that infants who spent more than 20 cumulative hours in chlorinated indoor pools had a higher risk of bronchiolitis, asthma, and respiratory allergies later in childhood. The authors noted that the findings warranted further research, but the concern is real enough to take seriously.
This doesn't mean you should keep your kids out of the pool. However, it does mean you should be more cautious when swimming in indoor pools with poor ventilation than outdoor pools, where chloramine gases can disperse naturally. It’s also a good idea to limit very young children's time in heavily chlorinated indoor environments.
Chlorine strips natural oils from the skin and hair. For most people, this means a little dryness after a swim. But for people with eczema or sensitive skin, it can be more disruptive. A review published in the National Institutes of Health found that chlorine reduces the water-retaining properties of the outermost skin layer in people with atopic dermatitis, worsening dryness and irritation. The same review noted that swimming itself shouldn't be discouraged for eczema patients, but protective measures—like moisturizing before and after a swim, and rinsing promptly when you get out of the pool—are important.
For hair, the effects are primarily cosmetic, but still real. A study in the Journal of Dermatology found hair discoloration in 61% of elite swimmers compared to 0% of non-swimmers, with electron microscopy revealing significant cuticle damage and elemental chlorine embedded in affected hair. That damage causes dryness, brittleness, and the greenish tint some blonde swimmers know well, though it doesn't cause hair loss from the follicle.
You don't need to avoid pools altogether, but there are a few simple habits to minimize irritation:
You don’t need to swear off the pool this summer. Keeping your family safe comes down to having the right information, implementing good habits before and after a swim, and washing swimsuits with a gentle detergent after every pool day.
